Creating Workflows

Creating workflows in Ravenna uses a visual, drag-and-drop interface where you connect triggers and actions to automate business processes. The workflow builder makes it easy to design automations without any coding required.

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Getting Started

Navigate to your desired collection and click “Create Workflow” to begin. Give your workflow a clear name and description that explains what it accomplishes. New workflows start in Draft state, which means you can edit and test them but they won’t execute automatically until published.

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Building the Workflow

Every workflow needs exactly one trigger that defines what event will start the automation. Choose from triggers like ticket creation, status changes, or Slack reactions based on what should initiate your workflow. Configure the trigger with appropriate filters to ensure it only activates for relevant events.

After adding your trigger, add actions that perform the tasks you want to automate. Actions can create or update tickets, send Slack messages, manage user access, or integrate with external systems. Each action can use information from the trigger or previous actions to make dynamic decisions.

Connect your trigger to actions by dragging lines between them on the canvas. This creates the execution flow that determines the order in which actions run. You can create branching workflows where multiple actions run in parallel, or sequential workflows where actions run one after another.

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Configuring Steps

Each step in your workflow has configuration options that determine how it behaves. Triggers have filters to control when they activate, such as specific queues for ticket triggers or particular channels for Slack triggers. Actions have input fields that define what they do, like the message content for Slack actions or ticket properties for ticket creation actions.

Use dynamic values to make your workflows respond to the specific situation that triggered them. For example, a ticket creation action can automatically include the priority from the triggering ticket, or a Slack message can mention the user who created a ticket. The workflow builder provides tools to reference information from earlier steps in the workflow.

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Data Flow

Information flows automatically between workflow steps, enabling sophisticated automations that adapt to context. When a trigger activates, it provides information about the triggering event that subsequent actions can use. Actions also produce outputs that later actions can reference, creating chains of related activities.

The visual workflow builder shows you what information is available from each step and helps you configure actions to use that data appropriately. This makes it easy to create workflows that feel intelligent and responsive to the specific circumstances that triggered them.

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Workflow Validation

The workflow builder automatically validates your workflow design to prevent common issues. It ensures you have exactly one trigger, prevents infinite loops, and verifies that all steps are properly connected. Required fields are highlighted, and the system checks that dynamic references point to valid data sources.

If there are validation errors, the builder provides clear feedback about what needs to be fixed before you can publish the workflow. This helps ensure your automations will work reliably once they’re active.

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Testing and Iteration

Use manual triggers to test your workflows during development. This lets you verify that each step works correctly and produces the expected outputs without waiting for real events to occur. Start with simple workflows and gradually add complexity as you become more familiar with the system.

Test your workflows with realistic data that represents the actual conditions they’ll encounter in production. Pay attention to edge cases and error conditions to ensure your automations handle unexpected situations gracefully.

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Best Practices

Design workflows with clear, descriptive names for steps and meaningful descriptions that explain what each step accomplishes. This makes workflows easier to understand and maintain, especially when multiple team members work with them.

Start with simple, linear workflows before attempting complex branching logic. Focus on solving one specific problem well rather than trying to handle many scenarios in a single workflow. You can always create additional workflows for related but distinct automation needs.

Keep workflows focused on specific business processes rather than trying to create one workflow that handles everything. This makes them easier to understand, debug, and maintain over time.